So Close, So Enjoyable

Within a ten-minute boat ride from Gorontalo City, divers can enjoy the beautiful shallow reef, sand basin, and deep wall called Hole-in-the-Rock. Well over half a kilometer long, this dive site is known for its amazing variety of coral and fish. Those diving here can see many species of parrotfish and angelfish, as well as many Scaly thorny oysters (Spondylus squamosus) with coral growing on their shells. A careful observer will also see Fluted giant clams (Tridacna squamosus).

While diving there this morning, I added eleven species to the list of observed marine life. This included the distinctive Black garden eel (Heteroconger perissodon) found only in Indonesia and the Philippines. This site also has the usual spotted variety of garden eel. Visibility was about 20 meters. Upon descent, the vistas over the shallow reef washed in sunlight were wonderful. Even the sand bay with its patches of eels had good visibility. Also I counted several different kinds of sea cucumbers there, including a meter-long Thelenota anax. Several beautiful Leopard cucumbers (Bohadschia argus) ploughed the sand. The site hosts numerous colonies of the local new species Orang-back wrasse (Cirrhilabrus aurantidorsalis). While looking among the coral for cardinalfish, I was enveloped by streams of Banana fusilier (Pterocaesio pisang) and Little unicornfish (Naso minor). It is hard to image more relaxing diving anywhere on Sulawesi.